According to the UN’s International Migrant Stock, almost half of the world's immigrants are women, yet their stories are less covered by media. Even though they are far less employed than men, migrant women hold 63.5% of the labour force compared to the 48.1% of non-migrant women. Nevertheless, this does not represent the conditions in which these women work, nor the qualification needed for the job.
F., an Iranian migrant who owned a grocery store in Lyon, shared insights of the challenges she faced at her arrival. Being a political fugitive’s wife, she reunited with him and their kids back in 1996. “My husband is a fugitive” she says, “but I’m not.”
The Republican Integration Contract (CIR), adopted in 2005, obligates migrants to follow specific trainings, including language courses, to permanently live in France. This mandatory contract that sees language acquisition as “the cornerstone of the global process of economic, social and civic integration” was the biggest deception F. faced. She wanted to learn the language and ascend the social ladder : “At first, they taught us some grammar and suddenly, they started speaking about jobs. They told me my level was enough to become a cook, so I did. No one talked at the workplace.”
After various experiences as an apprentice, F. opened her store as a way to support her husband, a shop owner himself. Regardless of her acceptation of the path France enforced, her regrets and deceptions are preventing her from succumbing to a coerced fate. “I really would like to learn French. It has been 27 years since I have been here, when will I be able to learn it? I cannot even communicate with my own kids sometimes!”
As a result of the inadequate incentives for migrant integration, women’s work opportunities appear to be highly limited. “Certain diplomas are not accepted in Europe”, says Fatimazahra, an Italian student with Moroccan origins, who moved in France with her family in 2019. Even though women have a higher education rate than men, they face more difficulty to find jobs. Being a migrant woman inevitably leads to the undertaking of precarious or even undeclared jobs. In Italy, the increase of il badantismo, migrant women living with and taking care of aged Italians, shows the place these migrants are being allocated within society. “It looks like we don’t work to live, we live to work.”, states F.
As a veiled woman, Fatimazahra has been exposed to remarks in Italy, such as “You are more beautiful without it” or “Boom!”, as a reference to terrorist attacks. As a matter of fact, some companies in France have a neutrality clause which prohibits the wearing of all kinds of religious, political or philosophical signs at work. Therefore, they can use it as an excuse to ban the wearing of veils inside the workspace. “My mom says that it is better if I took it off sooner or later for work, but personally, why should I? There is absolutely no logical reason for me to do so, it is really stupid to impose such laws, especially to women.”
Liberty, equality, fraternity is . Migrant women do not seem to fit in either of these three boxes. Europe is losing a qualified workforce in the name of migration regulation. However, regulation should not be confused with restriction and exclusion. If only migrants could be employed based on their merit and skills, and not on their gender, nationality or physical appearance, a big part of Europe’s social issues could be solved. “The base of every policy and of a good life”, says Fatimazahra, “is respect and solidarity.”
By Eda ÜNER
To go further on our May file dedicated to migrations, you can read our Culture and International Relations sections’ articles on our blog.
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